The complexity of starting the Premier League season cannot be understated.
It’s been almost two months since the last match was played on March 9 and time is fast running out to complete the remaining 92 fixtures.
Premier League chiefs and club officials are doing all they can to finish the campaign, with several potential solutions being put forward in recent weeks.
One option is to play the rest of the campaign behind closed doors with minimal backroom staff and media present, another would see all games played at a select few stadiums in the Midlands while enforcing strict lockdown rules.
A less practical suggestion is to host the rest of the season in a region where the threat of coronavirus is less severe than in the UK, such as Qatar or Australia.
But of all the prospective ways to conclude the 2019/20 campaign as fairly as possible, the Premier League appears to be working on a ‘football festival’ as the answer.
The Sun reports that top-flight administrators on Friday presented the 20 shareholder clubs with a new plan to wrap up the season before UEFA’s domestic league cut-off date of August 2.
It marks June 19 as the absolute latest date to return to the pitch, with matches played over a seven-weekend window and two midweek dates.
The constricted timetable - which will also allow for the completion of the FA Cup - is still to be agreed by the clubs, but The Sun claims it is considered “a more sensible and cautious approach” to the demands placed on players.
The Premier League originally proposed to squeeze the remainder of the season into a five-week period, though their ambition was met with doubts over the increased risk of injuries.
However, football won’t be returning in any capacity if the British government elects not to ease lockdown restrictions in the near future.
Ministers are set to review the current measures by this Thursday in what could be a defining decision for the fate of the 2019/20 campaign.